Irregular immigration to Greece has reportedly plunged significantly according to InfoMigrants* which cites Greek government data.
According to the news report, the refugee and migrant populations in Greece have plummeted by more than half in 2023 compared to last year, according to the latest figures announced by Greek authorities.
The government’s March 2023 Migration Newsletter reported an overall reduction of 53% as well as a 49% fall in arrivals month on month.
‘However, the government is still monitoring the situation closely, as there also was a significant increase in arrivals in the first two months of 2023 compared with the same period in 2022. In total, the rise in arrival numbers for January and February 2023 came to 167% compared with the same period in 2022.
‘The Greek Ministry of Migration and Asylum said that currently, “a total of 13,798 people seeking asylum resided in the country in February 2023, compared to 29,071 in February 2022.’
“The decrease, which shows a steady downward trend despite the larger number of arrivals [at the beginning of] this year … amounts to 53%.”
The government has implemented a strict but fair immigration policy since 2019. We reduced the flows by 90% and this ultimately also had an impact on the labor market because many of those who entered our country illegally were also working illegally,” said Migration Minister Notis Mitarakis.
In the first two months of 2023, the majority of asylum seekers came from Afghanistan (13.8%), Pakistan (13.0%), the Palestinian Territories (10.1%), Syria (7.3%) and Egypt (6.0%).
Of all asylum requests submitted in the first two months of 2023, 76% were filed by men and 24% by women.
*InfoMigrants is a collaboration led by three major European media sources: France Médias Monde (France 24, Radio France Internationale, Monte Carlo Doualiya), the German public broadcaster Deutsche Welle, and the Italian press agency ANSA. InfoMigrants is co-financed by the European Union.
